How Minnesota reflects 2025's big camping trends

From the rise of farm camping to the lure of pickleball, several national camping trends are worth watching on Minnesota's outdoors scene.

The Dyrt, a popular campsite review and booking app, issued its 2025 report this week. The platform surveyed more than 6,000 of its 30 million users, U.S. residents, and government-run and private campground managers.

Farm campers aside, Dyrt owner Kevin Long said an interesting result of the report is that 80% of respondents camped the same volume or more in 2024. Long and his wife, Sarah Smith, both former Minnesotans, own and run The Dyrt.

"Once again, camping is definitely showing it's inflation-proof," he said. "It was a rough, rocky year with inflation, interest rates, and politically. Camping is not taking a hit."

Minnesotans, perhaps, can take some credit. The Midwest region had the highest percentage of residents who took children camping.

Here are five other takeaways from the report:

'Farm campers' are words with traction

Campers are looking to set up on farms. One in seven reserved space on a farm last year, a 3% increase since 2019. Amid the rise, the report said more than half of all farm campers prefer to anchor in recreational vehicles. Farm campers also are more likely overall to camp in winter and go solo.

Long said farm visitors are likely returning customers who possess the equipment, They might also seek a different experience, like touring working land.

A Hipcamp spokesperson said the campsite reservation platform has had a 47% increase in farm stays in the past two years. There are 7,500 farm camps on the site, including more than 60 in Minnesota. One highly rated is Gilles Family Dairy & Woodland in Houston, in Minnesota's bluff country. The dairy promotes its secluded campsites, wildlife and winding trails on 100 acres.

Have pickleball, will travel

What comes to mind when you think of campground amenities? Electrical hookups? Wi-Fi? A new trail? Pickleball was the top new feature in 2024, with 17% of private campgrounds adding courts.

The Minnesota Pickleball Association supports weekend tournaments that routinely draw 300 players or more. Association president Andrew Trentor fielded inquiries from travelers in search of campgrounds around the Midwest where they can set up and get out the rackets.

"I'm not surprised at all," said Trentor of the rise of courts at campgrounds. "People build it into their vacation or travel plans."

Like him: Trentor intentionally sought out resorts with courts for his honeymoon two years ago.

Solo is in

Of all trips, solo outings increased for the third consecutive year. The preferred means: tent, followed by RV and camper van. Why? The majority cite the solitude, while more than half said they got out alone because friends and family were unavailable.

Mixed signals for glamping

Glamping, aka camping with well-appointed amenities, has come down from its 2022 peak. Cost could partly explain the dip, as well as travel slowing to pre-pandemic activity. A little more than 4% of campers went glamping in 2024, a 9% drop from 2023.

Conversely, Hipcamp predicts families watching their pennies will drive glamping this year, doubling their bookings from 2024. Sauna experiences are also a growing incentive. Another glamping trend: It is the type of camping overall with the most availability.

Glamping might be mixed nationally, but winter availability and Minnesotans' general spirit for recreation seem to be an advantage in this state.

Kelsey Braun and Chris Austin said marketing for winter is fundamental for their Cuyuna Cove cabins near the state recreation area in Crosby and their newest property in Tofte.

"We pick our locations because of the location year-round," Braun said.

Word-of-mouth and return customers also have helped business at an overall challenging time of the year in the state's hospitality industry. Braun said collaborating with other businesses that, for example, run dog sled tours or crank up saunas has helped, too.

"It's really cool in these small towns, we've learned," she added.

The couple is more interested in producing distinctive, customized cabins — however the experience is defined in the camping realm — that overlap with customers' desire for recreation.

Tofte Trails Cabins opened in September of 2023: Five cabins built with reclaimed wood from a 140-year-old barn on 17 acres.

While they anticipate more glamping-type properties like theirs on the landscape, Austin added that small operations should remain in a rewarding but challenging sweet spot of expense vs. return.

Fewer campers are no-shows

On an upbeat note, no-shows and cancellations decreased by nearly 17% in 2024, meaning more sites were available. More than 70% of campers said they used all their reservations last year.

Campers with reservations at Minnesota state parks receive 15- and three-day communications ahead of their stays. The notifications rolled out systemwide last year to help stem no-shows. A state parks and trails spokesperson said the numbers of canceled reservations and modified reservations have been steady the past three years.